Raiders owner Mark Davis calls lawsuit by Oakland 'meritless and malicious'

Oakland Raiders owner Mark Davis has called a lawsuit filed against the team by the city of Oakland, California, "meritless and malicious".

The federal lawsuit, announced by Oakland City Attorney Barbara J. Parker, alleges antitrust violations and breach of contract, and names the Raiders, the NFL and every other team in the league.

While the city does not demand that the Raiders be forced to remain in Oakland, the seven-count filing in district court does seek restitution in the form of lost revenue, remaining debt on renovations to the Oakland Coliseum, court costs and fees, plus punitive damages.

"The City will seek a resolution for the maximum amount of damages available," Parker said in a news release shortly before filing the lawsuit.

"The lawsuit will not ask the court to prevent the Raiders' move to Las Vegas or keep the team in Oakland."

One of the main cruxes of the city's argument is that the NFL's relocation policy is "skewed" in the favour of cities looking to get a team and biased against current host cities because each team shares a part of the moving team's relocation fee.

The suit also alleges the NFL uses its relocation policy to in essence strong-arm host cities into ponying up money for a new stadium, threatening to move a team out of that city should the funds not be raised.

The city is seeking a jury trial but makes no specific monetary demand other than amounts to be determined at trial.

Speaking at the NFL owners' meetings, Raiders owner Mark Davis said: "I've got two words for the lawsuit and I used them the other day.

"One is meritless and the other one the attorneys will understand is malicious. And I'll leave it at that, and I'll let the attorneys do all the rest of the speaking."

The Raiders received league approval to relocate to Las Vegas in March 2017. They are expected to begin playing in Las Vegas when a new stadium opens in 2020.

The team does not know where it will play in 2019, though it had proposed a lease to remain in the Oakland Coliseum for one more season, prior to the lawsuit being filed.

Raiders president Marc Badain said that $7.5m lease proposal for one final season in the Oakland Coliseum has been taken off the table in the wake of the lawsuit.

Davis believes the team has a "number of options" for 2019 but NFL commissioner Roger Goodell said the league would need to know by February where the Raiders plan to play next season in order to set the schedule.

The Raiders final game at the Coliseum looks set to take place on Christmas Eve when they host the Denver Broncos.

Quarterback Derek Carr admits the uncertainty surrounding the team's home for next season is unsettling.

Carr said: "Just, where you are going to play your home games? That's just weird, and it's nothing anyone wants to go through. There is no book on how to do this. I'll figure it out the best way I can, day by day.

"We've had people talking trash about [the Coliseum], or whatever they want, but I love it.

"It's ours. It's been fun. And the fact that it could be the last [game] is crazy. But when that time comes, we will enjoy it."

Carr has had head four head coaches - Dennis Allen, Tony Sparano, Jack Del Rio and Jon Gruden - since being drafted by the Raiders in 2014.

This season he has watched Khalil Mack and Amari Cooper - both thought to be cornerstones of the Raiders' future alongside Carr before Gruden was hired - traded away to the Chicago Bears and Dallas Cowboys respectively.

"It's crazy, man," Carr said. "My brother [David] warned me about stuff like this, because he played for 12 years.

"I was like, 'No, man, when you get here it's just rainbows and butterflies because you made it to the NFL.' All of a sudden, you get new friends every year.

"I've had like 27 different people in the locker next to me in five years. It just shows you how tough this business is.

"Not only in the last five years, but in the last 12 months, there has been a lot of turnover.

"A lot of different things - systems, players, obviously the GM, coaches. It just teaches you that you can't control anything outside of what you can control.

"The best thing that you can do is show up every day and give it everything that you have, because anything outside of that is out of your control."